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Questions and Answers
What characteristic does a hypothesis NOT typically possess?
What characteristic does a hypothesis NOT typically possess?
Which of the following statements describes a one-directional hypothesis?
Which of the following statements describes a one-directional hypothesis?
In the context of hypotheses, what does the term 'positive relationship' mean?
In the context of hypotheses, what does the term 'positive relationship' mean?
What is true about two-directional hypotheses?
What is true about two-directional hypotheses?
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Which characteristic is essential for a hypothesis to be useful?
Which characteristic is essential for a hypothesis to be useful?
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What type of variable is manipulated by the researcher?
What type of variable is manipulated by the researcher?
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Which of the following is true regarding a continuous variable?
Which of the following is true regarding a continuous variable?
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What distinguishes a ratio measure from other levels of measurement?
What distinguishes a ratio measure from other levels of measurement?
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Which of the following is an example of a nominal measure?
Which of the following is an example of a nominal measure?
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In which level of measurement can you say that one response is more or less than another?
In which level of measurement can you say that one response is more or less than another?
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What is a characteristic of a qualitative variable?
What is a characteristic of a qualitative variable?
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What defines a dependent variable?
What defines a dependent variable?
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Which level of measurement implies that the distance between attributes has meaning?
Which level of measurement implies that the distance between attributes has meaning?
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What best defines a concept?
What best defines a concept?
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Which of the following is an example of a concrete concept?
Which of the following is an example of a concrete concept?
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What is the term used for a representation of a concept that can vary?
What is the term used for a representation of a concept that can vary?
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During conceptualization, what is primarily established?
During conceptualization, what is primarily established?
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What is operationalization in research?
What is operationalization in research?
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Which of the following would NOT be a variable regarding political participation?
Which of the following would NOT be a variable regarding political participation?
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What must be ensured about variable attributes in research?
What must be ensured about variable attributes in research?
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What aspect should researchers consider when selecting variable attributes?
What aspect should researchers consider when selecting variable attributes?
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What does reliability in measurement refer to?
What does reliability in measurement refer to?
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Which type of validity assesses whether a measure is predictive of an external criterion?
Which type of validity assesses whether a measure is predictive of an external criterion?
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How is face validity described in relation to a measurement?
How is face validity described in relation to a measurement?
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What might indicate low construct validity?
What might indicate low construct validity?
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What does content validity measure in research?
What does content validity measure in research?
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Why might qualitative research methods be seen as having lower reliability?
Why might qualitative research methods be seen as having lower reliability?
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Which statement best captures the essence of validity in measurement?
Which statement best captures the essence of validity in measurement?
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What is a potential issue with a measure that is considered reliable but not valid?
What is a potential issue with a measure that is considered reliable but not valid?
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Study Notes
Concepts
- A concept is a general idea used to summarize a specific phenomenon
- Concepts can be concrete, abstract, tangible, or intangible
- Examples of concepts include "height" and "love"
Transferring Concepts into Measurable Variables
- A variable represents a concept in its variation of degree, varieties, or occurrence
- A variable is a characteristic of a thing that can assume varying degrees or values
- Most variables are truly variable, meaning they have multiple categories or variations
Example: Concept and Variable
- Political participation is a concept
- Variables related to political participation include:
- Voted or not
- How many times a person has voted
- What party a person votes for
Conceptualization
- The process of conceptualization involves defining the meaning of a concept
- Conceptualization involves moving between loose ideas and finding a word that best describes them
- Sometimes, new terms need to be created to encompass a concept
- Dimensions represent subgroups of a concept
Operationalizing Choices
- Operationalization is the process of converting concepts into measurable terms
- It involves developing research procedures that result in empirical observations
- For example, socioeconomic status (SES) can be operationalized by combining income and education levels
Variable Attribute Choices
- Variable attributes must be exhaustive and exclusive
- They represent the full range of possible variations
Degree of Precision
- The level of precision in variable attributes depends on the research interest
- Consider whether it is better to include too much or too little information in a variable
Variables
- The dependent variable is the variable that is measured by the researcher
- The independent variable is the one that the researcher manipulates
- For example, in a study about the effects of a new educational program, the program is the independent variable and student achievement is the dependent variable
Qualitative and Quantitative Variables
- Qualitative variables are composed of categories that cannot be compared in terms of magnitude
- Quantitative variables can be ordered with respect to magnitude on some dimension
- Continuous variables are quantitative variables that can be measured with an arbitrary degree of precision
- Discrete variables are quantitative variables where values can differ only by well-defined increments
Levels of Measurement
- Nominal
- Ordinal
- Interval
- Ratio
Nominal Measures
- Offer only a name or label for a variable
- There is no ranking involved
- They are not numerically related
- Examples include gender and race
Ordinal Measures
- Variables with attributes that can be rank-ordered
- One response can be considered more or less than another
- The distance between attributes lacks meaning
- An example is socioeconomic class (lower, middle, upper)
Interval Measures
- The distance separating attributes has meaning and is standardized
- A "0" value does not mean the variable is not present
- An example is a score on an ACT test
Ratio Measures
- Attributes have a "true zero point" which has meaning
- Examples include waist and biceps measurements
- Allows for the creation of ratios
Hypotheses
- Hypotheses are untested statements that specify a relationship between two or more variables
- An example is "Milk drinkers make better lovers"
Characteristics of a Hypothesis
- States a relationship between two or more variables
- Is stated affirmatively
- Can be tested with empirical evidence
- Most useful when it makes a comparison
- States how multiple variables are related
- Has a logical explanation for the relationship
Positive and Negative (Inverse) Relationships
- Positive: as values of independent variable increase, the values of the dependent variable increase
- Negative: as values of independent variable increase, the values of the dependent variable decrease (or vice versa)
Two-Directional Hypotheses
- General expression of a hypothesis
- Suggests that groups are different or concepts are related, but without specifying the direction of the difference
- An example is "Men and women trust UK security differently"
One-Directional Hypotheses
- Specific expression of a hypothesis
- Specifies the precise direction of the relationship between the dependent and independent variables
- An example is "Women have greater trust in UK security compared to men"
Determining Quality of Measurement
- Accuracy and consistency in measurement are essential
- Validity refers to accuracy
- Reliability refers to consistency
Reliability
- The extent to which the same research technique applied to the same object will give the same results
- Reliability does not ensure accuracy, as a measure can be reliable but inaccurate due to bias in the measure or data collection
Validity
- The extent to which a measure reflects what we think or want it to be measuring
Face Validity
- The measure seems to be related to what we are interested in finding out, even if it doesn't fully encompass the concept
- Example: Using grades to measure intellectual capacity has high face validity, while using number of close friends has low face validity
Criterion Validity
- The measure is predictive of some external criterion
- Example: ACT scores have high criterion validity as they potentially predict success in college
Construct Validity
- The measure is logically related to another variable as conceptualized
- Example: Financial stability might not be strongly related to happiness, resulting in low construct validity when used to measure happiness
Content Validity
- How much a measure covers a range of meanings, and whether it covers all relevant dimensions
- Example: A measure of prejudice that only asks questions about race might lack content validity, as it doesn't address other forms of prejudice
Methodological Approaches, Reliability, and Validity
- Qualitative research methods tend to have high validity and lower reliability
- Quantitative research methods tend to have lower validity and higher reliability
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